PHOENIX — Two former Phoenix police officers have been fired and arrested after investigators determined they assaulted a man and woman during an unreported traffic stop earlier this month, authorities said.
Former officers Luis Vasquez Jr. and Antonio Felix were arrested Saturday after the Phoenix Police Department investigated the Aug. 5 encounter. Police Chief Matt Giordano said detectives determined that both former officers physically assaulted the two people and that a Taser was used during the stop.
The traffic stop occurred late at night in south Phoenix. According to newly released court documents, Vasquez and Felix were driving an unmarked Phoenix police vehicle and began following a Dodge Charger shortly after 11:30 p.m. The documents say the patrol vehicle later struck the rear bumper of the Charger before the officers approached the occupants.
Investigators say the officers did not report the traffic stop and did not activate their body-worn cameras. Because there is no body-camera video, detectives relied on other evidence, including statements from the people involved and location data from the police vehicle, Giordano said.
According to police and court documents, the officers forced the occupants from the vehicle and used physical force against them. Vasquez allegedly punched the male driver and threatened to shoot him, while the female passenger was removed from the vehicle, restrained and also subjected to a Taser, according to investigators.
The driver eventually managed to get back into the vehicle and leave the area. The car was later abandoned in Tempe, where a local officer encountered the vehicle and began trying to determine what had happened.
The Tempe officer initially believed the two people could have been victims of an attempted carjacking involving people impersonating police officers. The investigation eventually led Phoenix authorities to determine that the people involved were Phoenix police officers.
Newly released court documents provide additional details about the investigation and say both former officers admitted their involvement in the traffic stop. Investigators also used vehicle-location data that placed the Phoenix police vehicle in the area around the time the victims reported the incident.
At a Saturday news conference, Giordano said there was no indication that the officers knew the two people before the traffic stop. He also said both officers had previous policy violations during their time with the department, but nothing comparable to the conduct alleged in this case.
Vasquez and Felix face multiple felony charges, including aggravated assault, aggravated robbery, kidnapping, threatening and intimidating, criminal damage, hindering prosecution and tampering with evidence.
Both men appeared in court Saturday night. A judge set a $100,000 secured appearance bond for each defendant and ordered electronic monitoring if they are released. Their next court appearance is scheduled for Friday. As of Sunday, Vasquez had been released from custody while Felix remained jailed at the Lower Buckeye Jail, according to authorities cited by CBS News.
The Phoenix Police Department’s criminal investigation and internal audit remain ongoing. Giordano said the department’s investigation established what detectives believe is probable cause that crimes were committed despite the lack of body-camera footage.
The Phoenix Law Enforcement Association, the city’s police union, said it was deeply troubled by the allegations and supported the department’s decision to terminate the officers, while stressing that the alleged conduct does not represent the professionalism expected of Phoenix police officers.
Vasquez and Felix had each spent years with the Phoenix Police Department before their termination. Information about attorneys representing the former officers was not immediately available.
Sources Used: newly released court-document reporting
